Townsend rings changes to end Scotland’s away-day woe

With several front-line Scotland players recently returned from injury, head coach Gregor Townsend has named five changes to the side which lost 28-8 in Ireland for Saturday’s visit to Rome.

If Scotland can beat winless Italy in their final Six Nations match they will have won three of their five matches for a second season in succession and are likely to finish third if Ireland complete their Grand Slam at Twickenham.

In the backs, wing Tommy Seymour comes into the side after recovering from a back injury sustained during the Calcutta Cup, with youngster Blair Kinghorn returning to the bench. In the midfield, Nick Grigg starts at inside centre in place of Glasgow clubmate Peter Horne, who endured a difficult afternoon in Dublin.

Up front Townsend has made three changes, with hooker Stuart Mcinally being rotated on to the bench to give him some rest, and fit-again Fraser Brown starting. Lock Grant Gilchrist drops out of the squad, with Tim Swinson starting alongside Jonny Gray, while the elder Gray brother, Richie, is on the bench. Finally, tighthead prop Simon Berghan is another who will be in the stands, with WP Nel starting and Zander Fagerson on the bench.

It speaks volumes for Scotland’s growing strength in depth up front that Townsend is able to rotate players who have been in the form of their life.

Although the coach said that the changes to the pack are partly driven by “who we are playing against, the challenges we believe they present and the things we are looking to do in our game plan”, as well as a need to involve key players ahead of World Cup year, he indicated that he has one eye on Edinburgh’s important home match against Munster tomorrow night. Asked whether Berghan and Gilchrist would play for their club, he simply replied: “Maybe!”

This is, believes Townsend, a side who are fit for purpose. Scotland have not won an away Six Nations match since their last visit to Rome two years ago, and there is a real sense that as favourites they must claim a victory.

“We have a big challenge ahead because we want to play better than we did against Ireland and get a win,” said Townsend. “We want to give a picture of who we are. After Dublin there was a lot of frustration, but you’ve got to turn that into determination and confidence, especially when we’re talking about attacking actions, where the players have to be heads-up and confident in what they’re doing.”

Tighthead prop Nel is looking forward to his first international start since he broke an arm against Samoa in November. It also marks, he hopes, a return to peak performance after a neck injury which he feared could end his career.

“It’s true that I wondered if I would ever come back, but it’s mentally made me stronger,” he said. “Now I’m just looking ahead.” Scotland Replacements